"She’s skied it better than I’ve ever seen anyone ski including me" - Mikaela Shiffrin bemoans long-time rival Petra Vloha's absence at Levi World Cup

Mikaela Shiffrin has bemoaned the absence of her decade-long rival Petra Vloha at the Levi World Cup, where she will ski in her first slalom race of the season. The two-time Olympic champion opened her season last month in Giant Slalom at Solde.

Shiffrin and Vloha were born in the same year in 1995 and have been competing against each other for over a decade now after making their debuts in 2011 and 2012 respectively. The duo has dominated the slalom event in the last decade, winning a combined total of nine World Cup titles in the event.

While it was the American skier who dominated the competition in the earlier stages, winning the event five times before Vloha won her first, the Slovak triumphed over Shiffrin for the Olympic gold in 2022. The pair have acknowledged each other for pushing each other and the sport forward as Shiffrin approaches the historic 100th World Cup win.

Speaking with skirracing.com ahead of her slalom race in Levi, Finland, Shiffrin bemoaned the absence of Vloha, who is recovering from knee surgery.

“We will be feeling her absence for sure," she said.

"She has pushed the limits on this hill, and she’s skied it better than I’ve ever seen anyone ski it, including myself," Mikaela Shiffrin added.

The 29-year-old further added that she would push herself in the absence of Vloha to honor her legacy.

"I know that if Petra were here, she’d be pushing all out, so I want to do her legacy justice and push myself as hard as I can," she said.

Vloha suffered a knee injury last season in January during a World Cup race in Jasna. She underwent surgery the following month and although she missed the first few races of the season, the Olympic champion is expected to make a comeback in the coming weeks.

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"Sometimes I think if she hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have performed as I did" - Petra Vloha on Mikaela Shiffrin

Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup - Mikaela Shiffrin and Petra Vloha (Source: Getty)

Mikaela Shiffrin and Petra Vloha have competed against each other since their junior careers. The Slovakian claims she used to get bewildered watching the American win with five-second margins.

"I remember she was winning with margins of like five seconds and for me it was like, ‘How is this possible? She pushed me and I gave everything from my body to ski better than her,” she told Olympics.com in a 2023 interview.

The 29-year-old further added that it was an honor for her to race with Shiffrin.

"It’s an honour for me to ski with her and of course it’s difficult, because she’s often in front, especially this season, which was really good for her. Sometimes I am thinking that if she hadn’t been there, maybe I wouldn’t have been able to perform as I did," she said.

Vloha had previously announced she will miss the competition until the end of November as she recovers from the knee injury. The 29-year-old had won her first race of the last season in Levi.